Dec 23, 2021
Leigh was born and raised in Los Angeles by his parents, a
teacher and librarian. He obtained both his undergraduate and law
degrees from Cal where he was student body president during each
tenure. Leigh has represented many of the most successful athletes
and coaches in football, basketball, baseball, hockey, boxing,
golf, etc., including the number one overall pick in the NFL draft
for an unprecedented eight times in conjunction with 62 total first
round picks. Furthermore, Leigh has represented other notable
athletes such as Oscar De La Hoya and Lennox Lewis, as well as
multiple Olympians and professional teams. With an unrivaled
history of record-setting contracts, Leigh has secured over $4
billion for his 300+ pro athlete clients and directed more than
$750 million to various charities around the world.
Leigh is easily distinguished from others within his profession by
his passion for giving to those less fortunate and his endless
campaign to make our world a better place. He has received
commendations from Congress, State Senate, State Legislature, the
Los Angeles City Council, the Orange County Board of Supervisors,
President Reagan, President Bush and President Clinton. Leigh has
been named Man of the Year over a dozen times by a variety of
groups including the March of Dimes, Cedars-Sinai, the Southern
California Boy, Scouts, the Orange County and Los Angeles Human
Relations Commissions, the Orange County and Los Angeles divisions
of the Anti-Defamation League, and several other professional and
charitable organizations. He has also been awarded the “Keys to the
City” in San Francisco, CA, Memphis, TN, Jacksonville, FL and
Concord, CA. In 2017, Leigh was inducted into the California Sports
Hall of Fame.
His efforts to save the Giants led then San Francisco Mayor Frank
Jordan to declare “Leigh Steinberg Day” in the city. In 1994,
then-Oakland Mayor Elihu Harris utilized Leigh as a consultant in
his successful bid to prevent the Oakland Athletics baseball club
from relocating. Leigh also served as Co-Chairman of the “Save the
Rams” committee in its attempt to keep the franchise from leaving
Southern California.
Leigh is often credited as the inspiration for the Oscar-winning
film Jerry Maguire. In addition to receiving a production credit
for the movie, Leigh also consulted on features such as Any Given
Sunday, For Love of the Game, and Arli$$.
He has been featured on national television programs such as “60
Minutes,” “Larry King Live,” “Fox News,” “Lifestyles of the Rich
and Famous,” and many more. A host of magazines have covered him
including Business Week, Sports Illustrated, ESPN the Magazine,
People, Forbes, Playboy, GQ, and FHM.
Additionally, he has supplied his expertise on the business of
sports and athletes for “The Dan Patrick Show,” in front of “ The
Jim Rome Show,” and “The Herd with Colin Cowherd,” and multiple
other radio and TV outlets. Leigh contributes a weekly column to
Forbes, The Huffington Post, and the Daily Pilot, while
occasionally contributing a guest column to The New York Times,
Sporting News, and Yahoo Sports. In addition, Leigh has penned
notable articles such as “The Future of Sports” for the Sports
Business Journal, “Around the NFL in 80 Million Dollars” for Inside
Sports Magazine and “The Future of Sport” for the Smithsonian
Magazine.
Leigh wrote a best-selling book, Winning with Integrity, providing
insight on how to improve life through non-confrontational
negotiation. Furthermore, Leigh’s most recent book, The Agent: My
40-Year Career of Making Deals and Changing the Game, details his
decades of dominance in the sports industry and sheds light on
overcoming his personal struggles to launch his comeback. Leigh has
been rated the #6 Most Powerful Person in the NFL according to
“Football Digest” and the #16 Most Powerful Person in Sports
according to “Sporting News.” He resides in Newport Beach and has
three children.